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GBPG Looking For Your Painful Playoff Memories

For all the euphoria that comes with getting your playoff ticket punched, Green Bay Packers fans also know what it’s like to be kicked in the gut this time of year.

True, every team that doesn’t get to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy at season’s end has to deal with the agony of defeat. But since the Packers last made a Super Bowl appearance 13 years ago, the team has experienced its share of historically heartbreaking post-season losses.

Green Bay Press-Gazette features reporter Thomas Rozwadowski apologizes for opening old wounds, but he’s picked his five worst post-season memories since the 1997 season and wants Packers fans to chime in.

1998, Wild card: It’s a TD for T.O. as San Francisco wins in the final seconds of Mike Holmgren’s last game as Packers coach

Were you at the game? Did your TV set survive? Are you still going to counseling while muttering Freddie Mitchell’s name over and over?

Pick the most painful loss, along with reasons why, and drop Thomas a line at [email protected] by Thursday morning. Please include your name, address and phone number in case they need to contact you. The more detail in your story, the more likely they’ll use it for print.

All of these losses hurt, but none of them made me throw a remote across the room and shatter it, the way I did after the T.O. TD catch. I think it was mainly because it NEVER SHOULD HAVE HAPPENED (Rice "fumble").

And to put an exclamation point on it, the play has become T.O.'s defining moment and his "go to" highlight. Seriously, for all his bluster, what has he done since? Ugh. Still makes me angry to even think about.

2007...that damn int...i was chopping up lettuce for tacos at work when favre throws that effing backshoulder slant...all i remember is webster coming up with it, me yelling and slamming the cutting board with the knife (well i thought it was the board anyways) cursing half of the crew i was working with...only to find 35% of my index finger gone due to the hatori hanzo chop i had just applied to my finger seconds prior...the amount of blood loss and agony could never amount to the pain i felt after seeing that play develop...

rofl, i been banned from a few places myself as well...i was shocked that people were upset after i went off like that in sports anger since i work at a frikin' sports bar, my boss even threaten to fire me but i was like "just do it, i got nothing to live for..."

While all these were horrid, for me, the worst playoff lose ever, is the 1995-96 NFC Championship game. It was the season of miracles, we were beating the Cowboys. It wasn't one killer play, like those listed above, but to watch a dream and lead die like that....killed me.

2007.....the day was so cold in Green Bay that beer froze in the can as soon as it was opened, I had horrible hat hair and someone either kicked or shot a hole in my rear fender. I paid $425 to sit in the endzone and watch Corey Webster pick off Favre in overtime. After the game, I found my designated driver drunk in the bar and I ended up being the driver back to Madison with 3 others passed out/sleeping in the car. Still wouldn't have missed that game for anything though!!! (and the score was 23-20)

4th and 26! The Packers drive all the way to the Eagles 35 running most of the way. 4th and 8 inches no Philly timeouts,Philly defense totally gassed and that idiot Sherman punts the ball! Get the first down and game over and Pack most likely makes it to Super Bowl that year. Suffered through a lot of close losses by the Packers but was not able to sleep that night only..

What about the only playoff loss to the Vikings, and the infamous Randy Moss mooning incident? Yeah it was only the wildcard round and we weren't going anywhere that year anyhow, but losing to the Vikings, especially in the playoffs, is about as bad as it gets (next to losing to the Broncos in the Super Bowl).

4th and 26- but not for the last play. But there was something like 13 pivotal plays in that game, had one gone the Packers way we win the game. They all went to Philly...A-Green tripping on the guard's foot at the goal line before half is one of many. They fired Bates but....

Oh- and three years in a row of 8-8 in the 80's missing the playoffs by a game each year. Heartbreaking.

Favre's dumber than dumb pick against the giants in 07 killed me more than the others - probably because we would have likely been Super Bowl champs and because the throw was so incredibly stupid. My girlfiriend told me that I muttered "what was he thinking" over and over in my sleep for months after that game.

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"I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle – victorious."